“Husbands love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.” (Eph. 5:25-27)
Clearly Jesus loves his church and so should we. A Christ-like love for the church will be expressed in practical ways. The scriptural metaphors related to the church help us understand how to express our love for the church.
The church is the bride of Christ. “’For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’ This is a profound mystery – but I am talking about Christ and the church.” (Eph. 2:31-32). The church is first and foremost committed to Jesus Christ and functions under his headship. Keep Jesus Christ at the center of all the church is and does.
The church is “a holy temple of God … And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.” (Eph. 2:21-22) The Holy Spirit indwells the individual believer and also the corporate church. As individual temples of the Holy Spirit we are to honor God with our bodies and so it is with the church. So, we honor God in the church with our corporate worship and Christ-honoring ministry. “… God’s temple is sacred and you are that temple.” (1 Cor. 3:17)\
The church is comprised of citizens of God’s kingdom. “…you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people…” (Eph. 2:19). The kingdom of God is within all believers and present in the church. The church is part of God’s kingdom and in the present age the kingdom of God is most visibly at work through the church. As citizens of God’s kingdom we support the church with our resources and loyalty.
The church is the “pillar and foundation of the truth.” (1 Tim. 3:15). I think Dietrick Bonhoffer was right when he said, “We must be able to speak about our faith so that hands will be stretched out toward us faster than we can fill them … Do not try to make the Bible relevant. Its relevance is axiomatic … Do not defend God’s word, but testify to it … Trust to the word. It is a ship loaded to the very limits of its capacity!” This is another way of saying “speak the truth in love”. This is what discipleship is about – the church teaching people to live biblically.
The church is a family. We are “members of God’s household” (Eph. 2:19). Developing personal relationships with God’s people is part of his design for the church. Relationships in the church will strengthen our faith, sustain us in troublesome times, protect us from losing our way, and position us to help others. Loving the church includes living in relationship with other members of his church.
The church is the “body of Christ” (1 Cor. 12:27). Loving the church includes finding our place of service in the church. The church is not complete in its function till all followers of Christ contribute to its health and mission. So, we are to be constantly in the process of engaging believers in the life and work of the church.
When the church is functioning at its best then it more effectively fulfills its mission to “… go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. …” (Mt 28:19-20). Jesus will build his church, and he has chosen you and me to be co-laborers in the process.
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